Demons In You
by Once Upon A Star Trek
Summary: Henry really wants to go to NYC for a concert of his favorite singer, Tarja. And in the process, he discovers something about his mom. Just what did Regina do to pass the time during those first 18 years under the curse? Short OS, SQ is established but has next to no influence on the actual plot.


"You're coming with us, if you want to or not." Regina rolled her eyes playingly. It was sweet seeing Emma so determined, if only the blonde knew.

Henry and Emma had at some point begun to dive into the metal scene and were now coaxing Regina to accompany them to Henry's first concert. Finnish singer Tarja was in New York City and the boy had begged his mother to go. The blonde mother, because he had simply estimated a higher chance of success. Which he had had, Emma had decided to make a family trip out of it. If she had paid more attention to her girlfriend's packing, she would have seen something was going on.

* * *

The drive was spent animatedly talking and in Henry's case bouncing around in excitement. Regina and Emma switched seats halfway. It had taken Regina a long time to let go of the reins and let Emma drive her car. Once in NYC, they checked into their hotel room - they didn't want to drive back for hours in the middle of the night and thus were spending the night. After quick trips to the bathroom, the family headed out to eat and then walk to the venue.

* * *

"Come on, we're going a little closer!", Henry said excitedly. Regina let him walk off with Emma, after making sure he had his earplugs in. The two disappeared in the crowd and the brunette grinned to herself. She went back to the coatroom quickly and came back right when the intro music of the support band Amaranthe started.

Henry and Emma were having the time of their lives, jumping along to the band. They were far enough up front to not notice the moshpit behind them during Inferno, that Regina might or might not have accidentally ended up in.

By the time the special guest Delain took the stage, their feet hurt, but they didn't care. The night was incredible and their favorite hadn't even started.

During the short break before the headliner, they searched the crowd for Regina, but couldn't spot her. Well, they had decided on the merch stand as meeting point after the concert, so they would see her then.

The smoke machine turned on and the music started. The intro was very long, but so magical. Emma got goosebumps. Henry hung at his favorite singer's lips throughout the show.

"Thank you so much New York for having me again. It's been 20 years since I saw you all last. It's lovely to be back here," Tarja laughed at some point in the middle of the show. "Remember the last time we were here? That was the concert with the malfunctioning backing track." There were some shouts and claps, so some fans in the audience had obviously been there. "I saw a familiar face in the back earlier. Come on up here while I tell the others the story."

* * *

_20 years ago:_

_Something sounded off. Like something was missing. The singer and band noticed it, too. The glances exchanged between them and some people - probably technicians - off-stage indicated that things were not how they were supposed to be. After a while of confusion, Tarja addressed the audience. "It appears that somehow, our backing track has broken."_

_Obviously, you can't sing several parts at the same time on your own, so being the perfectionist that she was, Tarja used a backing track for the additional vocals. And without it, it just sounded less good._

_"This is an opportunity to try something. Would one of you like to join me on stage and sing this next song with me?" The crowd roared. "Do we have any growlers here tonight for Demons In You?" Tarja's audience was different from the usual metal show. You couldn't expect growlers there. No one raised their hands._

_'Oh well, why not try it', Regina thought. She did growl. 'No one knows me here or will ever see me again.' She was just some goth girl who happened to sing, no one would care. And yes, goth girl. Regina had found that her darker, queenly style was actually pretty accepted as gothic in this world. Of course, she wouldn't wear her full fledged queen dresses, but she did use the material and styles, as well as her dark makeup. Basically a mini-evil queen. She raised her hand. "I see we have someone. Come on up!"_

_Regina was in too much of a stupor to laugh hysterically at the absurdity of the situation. After entering the stage under thunderous applause and being handed a microphone, Regina stood a little awkwardly. "Thanks so much for joining me. Who are you?", Tarja asked. To hell with it, she would enjoy this. "Hi. I'm Regina." She waved into the crowd. "Nice to meet you, Regina. Where are you from?" Really, how was she the one being interviewed by her favorite singer?! "I live in Maine. The town is in the middle of nowhere and so small, no one's gonna know it's name anyway." "Well, we're all lucky that you came all the way here then, right guys?!" The audience cheered in confirmation. "Well then, get ready for Demons In Youuuu!"_

_The intro of the song sounded and Regina could not resist its pull to dance. All her cares were thrown out of the window. As soon as she had growled her first word, astonished glances were thrown her way. And the clean parts sounded crazy good as well. No one had imagined her to sound this epic. Tarja stared at her ecstatically and even came over to take her hand and headbang together._

_Regina had a hell of a time. The song was over far too soon. After the last notes, the fans went wild. Tarja embraced Regina warmly. "Thank you so much for this. Alissa would be so proud. One more round of applause for Regina, please!" The fans happily obliged._

_The tech crew had by now managed to fix the backing track. Regina enjoyed the rest of the concert in the first row, even getting invited backstage afterwards. The singer was delightful to hang out with, very laid back and down to Earth, and Regina enjoyed her company immensely._

_"Thanks again for helping me out tonight. You know if you want, I can introduce you to some people if you want to get a foot in the door." Regina smiled, but shook her head. "That's very kind. But I think my desk job works better for me." The singer smiled. "What kind of desk job? I'm curious." "Well, I'm actually the mayor of my hometown." "Wow." On the list of things Tarja Turunen would have expected, this was pretty far in the bottom._

_They chatted for a while before Regina realized she'd have to drive home. Maybe a hotel would have been the better choice, but too late for that. "It was awesome to meet you. I hope to see you again", the singer bid her goodbye. Regina grinned. "Thank you, I had a lot of fun tonight."_

* * *

"So this woman came on stage and absolutely slayed it. And when I saw her earlier, I just couldn't resist to bring her up here for a reprise of 20 years ago. Say welcome to my old friend!" Emma and Henry had to collect their jaws from the floor upon seeing Regina entering the stage, in jeans and a band shirt. "What?!"

They shouldn't have collected their jaws so early, for Regina's singing had them gape again. How many secrets did that woman have? Henry went all out, while Emma filmed the moment. The rest of Storybrooke had to see this. Little did she know that it would end up all over Youtube anyway. At the "Like a million geysers still asleep" line, Regina looked Emma directly in the eyes, pronouncing it like "Like a million gays are still asleep" with a twinkle in her eye.

"It's so good to see you again!", Tarja said after the thunderous applause had ended. "Likewise." Henry almost died seeing his mom casually chat with his favorite singer. "How have you been?" "Very good. Wonderful", Regina smiled. "I see you smiling at one point in particular. Special someone?", Tarja inquired, making Regina's grin grow even brighter. "Very special. My son and his mother."

Upon descending the stage, Regina made her way to her family. "Surprise!", she laughed before being embraced by her two biggest fans. Emma grinned when she whispered in her girlfriend's ear: "Just so you know, I will never let you weasel out of karaoke night ever again."

The backstage invitation was extended to Henry and Emma and the boy was starstruck. The video broke the Internet. The clip of a fan casually taking the stage and rocking it was everywhere and all of Storybrooke knew all about their trip before the family even got home.

* * *

Back home on the next day, Regina took her family to her closet. When she revealed an entire section in the back that was full of band shirts, Emma's eyes grew the size of saucers. Regina chuckled at the sight. "I realized pretty quickly that I didn't feel happy in Storybrooke. As the only one aware of the curse and being stuck in time, sometimes I felt like I was the one cursed. And so I left town often. I used to go to lots of concerts back before Henry. It was the best feeling in the world, standing in those crowds, being free, I loved it. The energy during shows is just incredible, like together, you can achieve anything. Like you owned the world." Henry smiled. "I know what you mean, mom. Let's do this again soon. What bands are good to see?"

* * *

_Hi everyone. __This idea has been floating though my head for a while (even before Lana's performance at the con). I just thought it would be so super cool. In case you're interested, the song is Demons In You by Tarja feat. Alissa White-Gluz, I really recommend it. I have an alternative version of this story, with slight differences. While I like both, I like this one better. Maybe I'll put the other one up as a second chapter at some point, maybe not, who knows. Love y'all._


End file.
